Every new leader faces the immediate challenge of how best to communicate his or her vision to the organization. Employees are anxious when there is a change at the top, so it is important to begin the communication process as quickly as possible.

To explain the board’s delayed reaction, Joel Trammell, CEO of Khorus, which creates business management software for executives , said that “it’s never wise to dismiss a CEO in the midst of a crisis unless they themselves triggered it.